Battle of the Blondies

For those who don't already know, I've been trying to open my own bakery for a few years now. For a while it seemed like a dream in my far away future. But lately, it's looking like my dream may be part of my not-so-far away future. As a result, I've been paying a lot more attention to the recipes I make at home. I'm looking for things I like, as well as ruling out things I don't like. I was thinking about blondies today, and I realized I had no idea what my ideal blondie was! Did I want a thick and chewy blondie? Or did I want a soft and cakey blondie? Did I want it to be rich in butterscotch/caramel flavor? Or did I want it to be mild in flavor, similar to that of a sugar cookie? I didn't know! So what's the best way to find out??? Pit two popular recipes against each other and have yourself a good 'ole taste test! I present to you:

The Battle of the Blondies

The challengers: Smitten Kitchen vs. Cooks Illustrated
The recipes: Very similar ingredient proportions; the major difference being SK's does not contain a leavening agent and CI's does. Nearly identical mixing/baking methods, re-worded to reflect the fact.

Let's take a look at the recipes side-by-side:

As I pointed out before, the recipes and baking methods are almost the same. Nearly all of the ingredient proportions are the same, with CI going slightly heavier on the salt, egg, vanilla, and walnuts, but not enough to make a tremendous difference. The major difference is SK's not having any chemical leavening and CI's containing a bit of baking powder for some lift. The real question seems to be, to leaven or not to leaven? Ahahaha, oh yeah, that's comedy, people! Take notes!The results: As I bite into SK's blondie, the first thing I notice is how moist and "fudgy" it is. I liken it to really delicious cookie dough, without all that pesky graininess from undissolved sugar. This blondie would definitely be a suitable non-chocolate choice for lovers of fudgy brownies.

Cooks Illustrated on the left; Smitten Kitchen on the right

My second bite is into CI's blondie. The flavor is almost identical to SK's blondie, but the texture seems more like that of a baked good, no cookie dough texture here. The texture is pretty close to a cakey brownie, but it doesn't resemble cake at all. It's very dense and chewy, just like a blondie should be.

Neither of these have the hard, sugary chew of a chocolate chip cookie. Let it be known that these blondies are in a class of their own. I've seen some recipes for so-called "blondies" that are nothing more than chocolate chip cookies baked in bar form. These are NOT those!

As I said before, the flavors of these two blondie competitors are nearly identical. And the textures are noticeably different, but not enough to make me want to choose one over the other. I would call it a tie, but then what kind of battle would this be?? Before I give my final verdict, I just want to make it clear that both of these contenders played a fair game. They gave it their all, and when it comes down to it, I'd eat a barrel full of either if someone invented an "everything-you-swallow-after-this-will-be-fat-free" pill.

And now for the winner of this epic battle of Blondie vs. Blondie... only because I seemed to be more in the mood for something fudgy and squishy today:

Smitten Kitchen

UPDATE: After getting feedback from the peanut gallery, no one could really tell a difference between the two! Everyone loved them both. I have to call this one a tie!

Lollipop Tree® Blondie Mix w/ Belgian Chocolate

Before Stephanie left, I want the two of us to bake one last thing together. We were originally going to make cookies, but I couldn't think of anything except the same old boring cookies like chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin. Thank goodness I have a "pantry" (AKA cardboard box full of groceries that I don't want my parents or brother getting into) in my room overflowing with various mixes from TJ Maxx and other places of the sort. We decided to make these blondies because they would be easy to pack in a container to take with us on the 4.5 hour roadtrip back to her house. They tasted really delicious, but making them was slightly confusing. The only 2 ingredients mentioned in the instructions were 9 tablespoons of butter and 1 egg. When we mixed it all together, it was as stiff as cookie dough (I thought it was strange that the alternate instructions for "Chocolate Chip Cookies" were exactly the same, except for forming the dough into balls and baking on a cookie sheet). There was no way this stuff was going to magically transform into a blondie in the oven... a giant square cookie maybe, but definitely not a blondie! We starting adding water 1 tablespoon at a time until it looked like normal brownie batter (9 tablespoons total). We also added some chopped walnuts because we're awesome like that. Then we baked it according to the directions. The final result was a deliciously moist, cake-like brownie. They tasted so good that my mind totally wandered away from the fact that I was blogging them, and I didn't even get a picture of the finished product. Just take my word for it that they looked and tasted fabulous. I totally recommend this mix if you're into spending $3.99 for an 8x8 pan of brownies!

See? You are all witnesses that there is no mention of adding liquid!Stephanie chopped some toasted walnuts. Then I cut the butter into the mix.One egg is added.Aaaannnndddd... you end up with a bowl of cookie dough!Until you add 9 tablespoons of water!

And that's where the pictures stop. But you get the point. Now go shopping!